Paramount Pulls Upcoming Russia Releases Including ‘Sonic 2,’ ‘The Lost City’

Paramount is pausing its theatrical releases in Russia amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Its upcoming films that were scheduled to hit the country include Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (March 31) and Channing Tatum and Sandra Bullock’s The Lost City (April 7). The move comes after Disney said it would pause its releases in Russia, while Warner Bros. pulled The Batman.

Paramount released the following statement Tuesday morning: “As we witness the ongoing tragedy in Ukraine, we have decided to pause the theatrical release of our upcoming films in Russia, including The Lost City and Sonic the Hedgehog 2. We stand by all those impacted by the humanitarian crisis across Ukraine, Russia and our international markets and will continue to monitor the situation as it unfolds.”

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Hollywood has found success at the Russian box office in recent years, with Spider-Man: No Way Home earning $44.5 million in the country. Over the Feb. 25-27 weekend, the first since Russia invaded Ukraine, a number of Hollywood releases opened in Russia, including Joe Wright’s Cyrano and Paramount’s The Godfather: 50 Years. Holdovers included Kenneth Branagh’s Death on the Nile and Sony’s Uncharted.

The decision whether to continue to send films to Russia has sparked conversation behind closed doors in Hollywood, with studios taking action on Monday. Warner Bros., Sony and Disney all pulled high-profile upcoming releases from Russia.

Also Monday, the Motion Picture Association — the major lobbying arm for Hollywood film studios and Netflix — issued its first comment on the invasion.

“The Motion Picture Association stands with the international community in upholding the rule of law and condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On behalf of our member companies, who lead the film, TV and streaming industry, we express our strongest support for Ukraine’s vibrant creative community who, like all people, deserve to live and work peacefully,” the MPA statement reads. “We will continue to monitor the situation, working closely with our members and partners throughout the global creative sector.”